Michael Collins Research Paper
“We repudiated the British form of government not because it was monarchical, but
because it was British.”€ “€“ M¬i¬¬c¬h¬a¬e¬l C¬ollins (25)
In this paper, I intend to illustrate Michael Collins brief life: His childhood, his influences,
and how and why he helped Ireland achieve its independence. Collins was born in Ireland;
an island located west of England. He grew up in the 1890s: around the time of Thomas
Edison and George Gershwin. Around that time, the neighboring England had already been
in control over Ireland for more than 700 years, and the people of the Emerald Isle were
rebelling against British rule. What was considered a rather happy time for many countries
(“The Gay Nineties”€ in America), was the beginning of a time of great turmoil and
conflict for Ireland. Collins was a major figure in the Irish struggle for independence who
for nationalistic motives dedicated himself to free Ireland form British control, and to form
a new government in which the Irish people and country would prosper.
Michael Collins education and childhood had a big effect on his views and skills that came
into use later in his life. Collins was born to a young mother and a seventy five year-old
father on October 16th 1890, in County Cork, Ireland. He was born the youngest of eight
brothers and sisters into a fairly well-off farming family. From a young age, he liked
hearing stories of old Ireland, and those stories helped shape his feelings towards the
country: They were the first things that made him nationalistic. The stories made him see
all the good things about Ireland, admire it, and made him chauvinistic. This patriotism
was noticeable from a young age: One of his elementary school teachers once said he had
“more than normal interest in things appertaining to the welfare of his country.”€ His
schooling earned him the skills he used later in life: He was a hard worker and good
student in general. He was especially good at math, and had excellent observation skills (as
also noted by his teachers). These skills helped him fight the British later in his life. After
his elementary schooling, Collins moved to the town of Cloankilty and lived there with
one of his sisters in-order to continue his education at a higher level. After a short while, he
became interested in civil service, in London, and he soon moved again to fulfill his
yearnings. He passed his civil service exam in 1906, and served in London until his return
